Page:Witty and entertaining exploits of George Buchanan (11).pdf/11



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of the bishops were chosen and sent away to Scotland, to dispute it with the shepherds, accompanied with several oteers, who were to bear witness of what they should hear pass between them Now, George knowing which way they went, immediately took another road, and was in Scotland before them. He then made acquaintance with a shepherd on the border, whose pasture lay by the road side where the bishops were to pass; and there he mounted himself in a shepherd's dress: and when he saw the bishops appear, he conveyed his flock to the road-side, and fell a chanting at a Latin ballad. When the bishops came up to George, one of them asked him, in French, what o’clock it was? To which he answered, in Hebrew, It is directly about the time of the day it was yesterday at this time. Another asked him, in Greek, what countryman he was? To which he answered, in Flemish, If you knew that, you would be as wise as myself. A third asked him in Dutch, Where was you educate? To which lie answered in Gaelic, Herding my sheep between this and Lochaber. This they desired him to explain in English, which he immediately did. Now, says one of them we need proceed no farther. What, says George, are you butchers? I’ll sell you a few sheep. To this they made no answer, but went away shamefully, saying, they believed the Scots had been through all the nations in the world for their education or the devil had taught them. Now when George had ended this dispute with the bishops, he stripped off his shepherd’s dress, and up through England he goes, with all the haste imaginable, so that he arrived at the place from whence they set out, three days before the judges, and went every day asking if they were come, so that he might not be suspected. As soon as they arrived, all that were concerned in the dispute and many more, came crowding in to hear what news from the Scottish shepherds, and